PDF Summary:The Dream Manager, by Matthew Kelly

Employee turnover and disengagement are expensive problems that many companies struggle to solve. In The Dream Manager, Matthew Kelly offers an unconventional solution: Help your employees achieve their personal dreams, and they'll become more engaged, productive, and loyal to your company.

Kelly explains why employees become disengaged and how helping them pursue their personal aspirations can transform your workplace. He introduces the Dream Manager System, which uses tools like Dream Journals to help employees identify and work toward their goals. You'll learn how connecting work to personal dreams can reduce turnover, decrease sick leave, and create a more collaborative team—and you'll discover practical strategies for implementing this program in your own organization.

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To create a Dream Book, jot down your dreams without limiting yourself. Date each dream when you include it, and mark it with a new date once you've achieved it.

(Shortform note: The Dream Journal and Dream Book have a well-known predecessor: Julia Cameron’s “morning pages” exercise from her 1992 book The Artist’s Way. Cameron’s morning pages are a daily practice where you write three pages of stream-of-consciousness thoughts every morning. This exercise helps clear mental clutter, overcome creative blocks, and tap into your subconscious. By writing without self-censorship, you can uncover hidden thoughts, emotions, and ideas that might otherwise remain buried.)

Impact and Outcomes

Kelly argues that connecting employees' work to their aspirations can increase allegiance and commitment. When employees receive encouragement in pursuing their aspirations, they become more invested in their roles and each other. The positive energy they feel from pursuing their dreams spills over into their professional lives. They feel grateful to those who help them and are willing to put in extra effort for each other. When employees regularly work toward what they dream of, they become better at achieving the goals you set for them at work.

Why Connecting Work to Aspirations Is Effective

Connecting employees’ work to their aspirations may be effective because it reduces the internal conflict that employees feel between their work and their personal lives. When employees feel that their work is at odds with their aspirations, they experience a constant tug-of-war between the two. This internal conflict can be exhausting and demoralizing, as employees feel like they’re constantly being pulled in different directions. By aligning employees’ work with their aspirations, you can help reduce this internal conflict and create a more harmonious work environment.

Furthermore, Kelly suggests that supporting employees' dreams can make them a more collaborative and effective team. When employees know what their colleagues aspire to, they want to assist one another in achieving them. This creates a personal investment in each other, which is the foundation of teamwork. Also, when employees are excited about their aspirations, that energy influences their work. Finally, supporting others in realizing their dreams is satisfying, and it makes employees grateful to each other. This gratitude makes them more willing to assist one another at work.

The Potential Pitfalls of Supporting Employees’ Dreams

While supporting employees’ dreams can foster collaboration, it can also backfire if managers use it as a tool for organizational control. In The Managed Heart, Arlie Russell Hochschild argues that when companies require employees to display certain emotions, it can lead to cynicism and resentment. If employees feel pressured to share personal aspirations and then have those aspirations used to motivate performance or loyalty, they may view it as emotional exploitation. This can undermine trust and morale, ultimately harming the very collaboration it aims to create.

Implementing and Scaling the Dream Management Program

Practical Implementation Strategies

Kelly believes that managers should engage with employees' personal dreams to foster a collaborative and dynamic work environment. Employees who are enthusiastic about their own aspirations will feel the same about their work. They’ll also be more likely to support one another in achieving their aspirations, which will make them more likely to offer mutual assistance at work. Managers who assist their employees in accomplishing their aspirations will feel fulfilled, and employees will feel grateful to their managers. This will foster a positive workplace atmosphere.

(Shortform note: While Kelly argues that managers should engage with employees’ personal dreams and aspirations, this approach can backfire. In The Managed Heart, Arlie Russell Hochschild argues that when employees are expected to perform emotional labor—such as expressing gratitude to their managers for helping them achieve their dreams—it can lead to emotional exhaustion and a sense of inauthenticity. This can erode trust and create a workplace culture where employees feel pressured to share personal information they’d rather keep private.)

To start, Kelly suggests that managers should write down their personal aspirations. Then, they should spend time each day talking to their employees and becoming familiar with them. They should convene a session to discuss why dreams are important and encourage employees to write down their own. Managers should take advantage of employee reviews to discuss employees' goals and find ways to help them make those dreams come true.

The Importance of Self-Concordant Goals

By writing down their aspirations and discussing them with employees, managers can help themselves and their employees develop “self-concordant” goals. According to psychologists Kennon M. Sheldon and Andrew J. Elliot, self-concordant goals are goals that align with a person’s values and interests. They argue that people are more likely to pursue self-concordant goals with greater effort and persistence. This means that by helping employees develop self-concordant goals, managers can encourage them to put more effort into their work and improve their performance.

Demonstrable Impact and Tactical Advantages

Kelly contends that the Dream Manager initiative can significantly reduce employee turnover and sick leave. This program fosters an environment where dreams are nurtured, leading to greater enthusiasm and achievement. Employees feel more connected to their work and are less likely to leave, which saves money on recruitment and training expenses. They also take fewer sick days, reducing operating costs even further.

(Shortform note: A study by Daphna Oyserman, Deborah Bybee, and Kathy Terry found that when students were encouraged to envision their “possible selves”—the people they could become in the future—they showed improved school attendance and engagement. This suggests that when people are given the opportunity to articulate and plan for the lives they want, they’re more likely to show up and stick with their commitments.)

Additionally, Kelly is of the opinion that the program fosters an environment focused on aspirations, leading to increased excitement and productivity. Employees are recognized for their achievements, which inspires others to pursue their personal aspirations. When employees reach their aspirations, they become more confident and set even bolder objectives. The program also helps them build abilities in setting goals and strategic planning, which they apply to their work. The desire for continuous improvement serves as a daily motivator, elevating the team and the business.

The Learning Organization

Peter Senge’s concept of the “learning organization” in The Fifth Discipline provides a broader context for understanding the benefits of an aspirations-focused environment. Senge argues that organizations thrive when they foster continuous learning and personal mastery among employees. He explains that personal mastery involves clarifying and deepening personal vision, focusing energy, and seeing reality objectively. This discipline encourages individuals to set ambitious goals and develop strategic plans to achieve them. Senge emphasizes that personal growth and organizational development are intertwined, creating a culture of continuous improvement.